Median Weekly Incomes Rose in Q4 2011

The Bureau of Labor Statistics has reported that, as of the fourth quarter of 2011, the median weekly income of the nation’s full-time employees was $764; 1.6 percent higher than the same period in 2010. The median weekly earnings of all women were $688 compared to $843 for all men; equating to women earning about 81.6 percent as much as men.

As usual, the earnings ratio between the sexes varied by racial and ethnic characteristics: white women earned average wages that were 81.4 percent of those of white men; black women earned 91.1 percent as much as black men; Asians earned 80.3 percent as much as Asian men; and Hispanic women earned 90.4 percent as much as Hispanic men.

The breakdown of major races and ethnicities found that black men working full-time earned a median weekly wage of $660; 75.8 percent of white men. Black women working full-time earned a median weekly wage of $601; 84.8 percent of white women. Median weekly earnings for full-time Hispanic workers ($537) were the lowest for all major race and ethnic groups, compared to blacks ($621), whites ($786), and Asians ($880). Age also played a significant factor in average median full-time weekly wages.

White men aged 55 to 6 had the highest median weekly income at $1,029, followed closely by white men aged 45 to 54 who reported a median weekly wage of $993. Women aged 45 to 54 earned a median weekly wage of $757, followed closely by women aged 55 to 64 ($742), and women aged 35 to 44 ($737). The lowest earning workers were aged 16 to 24 and earned a weekly median wage of $447. Employees in management, professional, and other related occupations earned the highest median weekly wage; $1,274 for men and $946 for women.